Consumers interested in acquiring services must first identify a service provider who is capable of providing the required services. At present, this usually means perusing a telephone directory, which can become frustrating and time-consuming if the service providers telephoned are not immediately available. In addition, a simple telephone call does not enable the service provider to charge a fee according to the time spent with his/her customers.
Systems now exist that enable providers of services to charge fees for the time spent delivering the service. 1-900 phone numbers will charge the seeker of services according to the time spent receiving the service and will transfer this payment, or a portion of it, to the provider. Each 1-900 number, however, has a very narrow scope—“Hear your Horoscope,” for instance. If a seeker would like to hear an entirely different service—“Your Local Weather,” for instance—he/she would have to dial a completely different 1-900 number. Similarly, each 1-900 number is quite rigid in the price, quality, and specificity of its service.
However, current systems (service provider systems) now exist that enable seekers to locate service providers according to a wide range of price, quality and specificity of service (U.S. application Ser. No. 09/414,710 and U.S. application Ser. No. 09/702,217). Such systems also make it possible for the service provider and buyer to be connected and communicate in real time. Such systems, provide service seekers the capability to select service providers via the Internet, assuming the service seeker owns or has access to the necessary computer hardware to browse the internet. In addition, a service seeker can be matched to a wide array of service providers with specific skills using only a simple audio-transmission medium such as the telephone.
The systems described above, such as for example, the service provider systems, are designed to generate capital for both the owners of the systems, as well as the service providers, which provider their services via the systems. As such, the more requests and live conversations the service provider engages in, the more money the service providers will generate. Accordingly, the more money generated by the service providers, the more money that will be generated for the service provider system. As such, the system described above not only aspire to attract as many customers as possible, but where possible, to have as many repeat customers as possible.
Therefore, the goal of each of the service provider systems described above is to provide improved compensation for the service providers and as a result, the systems themselves. Unfortunately, current means do not exist for tracking previous customers of the system. This customer relationship management aspect is not available in current systems, but could certainly be utilized in order to generate additional capital for the service providers available to the systems and as a result, provide additional compensation for the service provider systems. Generally, the system may keep a percentage of the fees paid to service providers for providing live advice and therefore directly benefit by having repeat customers.
Therefore, there remains a need to overcome one or more of the limitations in the above-described existing.